Hi, my name is Eric Abraham and I’m from Boynton Beach, Florida. I was an NCSYer in Southern NCSY and I know the profound impact that NSCY can have on teens. I’m excited about the opportunities through The Shevet Glaubach Fellowship because they are unlike any other opportunity out there.
Hi, my name is Aviel Avidan and I am from Teaneck, NJ. I recently graduated from Yeshiva University, Sy Syms School of Business where I majored in entrepreneurship and minored in marketing. I am B”H currently learning in REITS and plan to spend the next four year there receiving semikha. I am excited about the opportunities through the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship because it’s clear that the resources and vision of the fellowship are setting us up for tremendous impact and it really is a zechut to be part of such a team!
Hi, I am Arieh Livieim, I am from Great Neck, NY. I am currently in Queens College studying Finance and Economics. I am excited about the opportunities through the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship because it gives me the opportunity to give back to the community and make sure the kids have someone relatable to go to in the need of advice.
Hi, my name is Aryeh Margolin. I live in Edison, NJ and I am currently a junior in YU studying accounting. I’m so excited to be a part of The Shevet Glaubach fellowship for my second year because of the amazing relationships I made last year with my NSCYers. Had it not been for this beautiful program, I would have probably never met them and my life would look very different. The joy I saw in them from their limud haTorah has left an indelible mark on me and has forever changed they way I learn Torah and connect with Hashem. I’m so excited to have the same opportunity again this year.
My name is Adina Peck, and I’m from Charlotte, NC. I study psychology and anthropology at Emory University in Atlanta and participate in many activities pertaining to environmental sustainability and Jewish life. I’m looking forward to connecting Jewish teens to Torah, to other students, and to mentors with whom they can grow enduring relationships. I’m thrilled to be a part of The Shevet Glaubach Fellowship. I’m excited to continue improving my organizational and leadership skills and can’t wait to learn from and with teens in the Greater South.
Hello everyone! My name is Esther Perez and I am a current full-time student. I grew up in Brooklyn, New York and have been here my whole life. I currently study at Stern College for Women and am pursuing a career as a Social Worker with a specificity in non-profit development. I also previously attended Shaalvim for Women in Israel. I am extremely excited for the opportunities brought by the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship because it will hopefully allow me to get involved with NCSY’s amazing community and to get in touch and build relationships with NCSY members I would have never met previously!
Hi. I’m Bracha Smith from Los Angeles and I graduated from Touro College Los Angeles with a degree in psychology. I went on to earn my teacher’s credentials through Hebrew Union College. I spent the past three years as an advisor for NCSY, first for West Coast NCSY and then for New York NCSY. I feel very fortunate to be a Shevet Glaubach Fellow. I hope to inspire the next generation and contribute to the NCSY community.
Daniel Aaron currently lives in Monsey, NY, and is an upper sophomore attending Yeshiva University studying finance and mathematics. He went to Heichal Hatorah in Teaneck, NJ for high school and then took a year and a half to learn in a Yeshiva in Israel called Yeshivat Mevaseret Tzion. He spent his 10th grade summer with NCSY on their kollel program. He also has a strong passion for kiruv and inspiring people. He wasn’t as religious as he currently is right now and he can relate to many kids going through different stages of their life in a way that very few people can. He loves reaching out to people and making new connections while also advocating and supporting a cause that he fully believes in and is proud to be a part of. He loves learning and creating an aura and appreciation for Judaism in ways that is fun and exciting.
Daniella Abekassis is originally from North Woodmere, NY. She is currently a junior at Stern College studying psychology. She has been a NY advisor this past year as well as a Shevet Glaubach Fellow. Although she did not have a chance to do much this past year, she is super excited to make up for it and get started!
Elisheva Adouth, from Miami Florida, just finished a year in Israel at Sha’alvim for Women. She
is planning on attending Stern College for Women this fall and plans to study Jewish Studies IYH. She did NCSY all throughout high school (summer programs, regionals, learn and earn, etc), and upon returning home from Israel early due to the Coronavirus pandemic she began learning with an NCSYer a year below her. She engaged heavily in a Chaburah Workshop in seminary in preparation for learning with students in the future, as she wants to go into Jewish Education IYH. She is excited about the opportunities through the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship because she has already been learning with someone for a few months and would like to be able to learn with more NCSYers who are open to that. Additionally, she feels as if the resources within the fellowship will allow her to learn a lot about teaching and bringing people closer to Hashem in general. She really wants to be able to be as involved in NCSY and with the NCSYers as possible. She felt that so many of her advisors were with her. She would love to use what she has to help others with what people once helped her with.
Eytan Aryeh is from Woodmere, NY. He is currently a senior in YU studying Psychology and Business Management and has just begun the Semicha Program at RIETS as well. He has always had an interest in impacting those around him and has searched for opportunities that would help him succeed in that goal. He was a core member of Yeshivat Hakotel’s leadership program which gave him the training and hands on experience needed to impact. Additionally, he has been a Coordinator for Senior Yachad for the past two years and an RA on YU’s Wilf campus which aided in his goal to impact as well. He is hoping that the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship can be another one of these amazing opportunities for him to continue his self growth while simultaneously being able to impact those around him.
Esther Avidan grew up and currently lives in Teaneck, NJ. She had the zechus of attending Ma’ayanot for high school, Tomer Devorah for seminary, and will I”YH be attending Touro this coming fall. She hopes to next semester, be’ezras hashem, begin studying towards either working in chinuch or special education (speech pathology or developmental psychology). She will also be’ezras hashem be getting her real estate license at some point in the near future… but that’s mamish a story of its own! She is so excited for the opportunity to learn, grow, and connect with you all! Together, we can build a strong community focused around strengthening each other and our kesher with Hashem. She is optimistic to see what the future holds for us, and is truly humbled and thankful for this very special opportunity and the bracha she has been given to be able to share it with you all.
Tzvi Berke from Cedarhurst, NY is currently in NYIT studying architecture. He has been an NCSY advisor since last summer when he did TJJ for NJ. Since the summer over this last year he went to the Winter Regional/Yarchei Kallah. He also been on two mission trips to New Orleans with NJ teens. Although not an NCSY program, he did go to Winnipeg for a shabbos retreat to meet high schoolers from the only Jewish school there, although it’s not a very religious community. He has mostly done NCSY programs associated with less religious teens. But one of the mission trips with a yeshiva and gave chaburahs to yeshiva teens at the winter regional. He is very excited about the opportunities through the Glaubach Fellowship because it means he gets to be involved more with
NCSY. He’s excited to have the chance to meet with more teens through NCSY and on a more consistent basis and develop deep and meaningful connections with them.
Zachary Berlin is from Edison, NJ and is currently at Lander College. He attended NCSY Kollel as a highschooler and worked at Camp HASC. He is very excited for this program to start and to meet everyone.
Yonatan Berner from Teaneck, NJ is currently studying Computer Science in Yeshiva University. Going on NCSY JOLT was his first NCSY experience. This was a life changing, transformational
experience which left a big impact on him. Last summer, he had the amazing opportunity to be an adviser on NCSY Hatzalah Rescue. Walking away from this program, he took with him not only an amazing experience, but realized that he learned and grew so much. Not only did he enjoy being part of the NCSY mission and helping others grow, but it helped him grow personally as well. Being able to be part of NCSY is an amazing experience and he very much looks forward to facilitating growth for others as well as himself.
Keith Bonwitt was born in Miami, FL and grew up there his entire life. He is currently at school in the University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering studying Computer Science. He has had past work experience as a counselor at a Zionist youth camp, as a Machine Learning engineering, and as a coding instructor. He is excited for the opportunity in this Fellowship to give to the Jewish people in a concrete way, connect to others in helping them reach their fullest potential, and to help himself grow by being a mentor.
Binyamin Ciment, from West Hempstead, NY is currently in YU, along with being pre med. He is excited to be given the opportunity to help individuals connect to God from where they are holding.
Sam Clarke was born and raised in Boca Raton, Fl. Sam studied at Yeshivat Orayta and currently attends the University of Florida. He plans to major in Political Science and Criminology. Sam has served as a Group Leader for Boca Raton Synagogue, Emtza and Freshmen NCSY Advisor, and looks forward to continuing his involvement within NCSY and the Jewish community. Sam is passionate about his Judaism and is excited to help teens, communities, and everyone feel inspired about their Judaism. Sam is a Shabbaton fanatic and can’t wait to participate in all the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship’s Shabbatonim! He also looks forward to the learning and mentorship opportunities, and hopes to make the best impact he can.
Leeyan Cohen is from Miami, FL. She just got back from her year in Sharfman’s seminary, which was unfortunately cut short due to Coronavirus. Leeyan is currently studying psychology in Broward College. She was a NCSYer in her Junior and Senior years of high school, where she started her religious journey. In her senior year she was the Southern NCSY Regional president and now she’s hoping to come back as an advisor or even better a Glaubach Fellow, to be able to give back to the organization that gave so much to her, along with being there for NCSYers who are in the same shoes she was just a few years ago!
Liat Cohen from Brooklyn, NY went to Central and studied for a year in Israel at Midreshet Moriah. She is currently enrolled in her second year at Stern/Sy Syms School of Business. She is looking forward to being a Shevet Glaubach Fellow for the Southern Region and serving on SGF Leadership Board.
Tehila Cohen is from Queens, NY. She went to Central for high school, and then to Shaalvim for Women in Israel. She now attends Stern College where she is a senior majoring in Elementary education. In the summer of 2019, She worked on TJJ and that really got her involved in NCSY and kiruv in general. She also had the opportunity to be a Glaubach Fellow last year and appreciated the message tremendously!
Moshe Cohen currently lives in Miami, but has also lived in many different places, such as Seattle WA, Greatneck NY, and Lima Peru. He is excited to work with Shevet Glaubach this year. Currently he’s in Yeshiva University studying History, with hopes to go to law school after graduation. He’s really excited to be a part of the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship because he think it provides a unique platform for different members of many diverse Jewish communities to spend time and strengthen their bonds, all within the scope of the Torah. Moshe worked with NCSY in the past, most notably as an advisor in Camp Sports last summer, and is incredibly excited for the opportunity to work with Shevet Glaubach this coming year.
Chana Caley Coughlan, from Denver, CO, is currently going to Stern studying psychology. She has been involved in Jewish leadership throughout high school, her year and a half in Israel, her home, her community, and currently in university as well. She is excited about the opportunities through the Shevat Glaubach Fellowship because all of her knowledge of Judaism has been from
only two places: high school and seminary – and she is excited to broaden her scope of Torah knowledge, specifically the practicality of it all, and how to infuse her life with rich Torah values.
From the array of speakers and opportunities that the Shevat Glaubach Fellowship gives access to, she will have the opportunity to expand her knowledge and application of it all.
Gedalia Dock is from Teaneck, NJ. This year he will be attending Touro’s Lander College for Men and majoring in Biology. He was an SGF last year and is look forward to reaching out and connecting to as many Jews as possible through the SGF this year.
Rivkie Elman, from Brooklyn, NY, is starting Queens college and is not exactly sure what she is going into, but has many interests. She don’t have any real background in NCSY but has ALWAYS been interested in kiruv; before her year in seminary, she was upstate with a friend talking to her non-religious neighbors. They ended up speaking for almost 2 hours about Jewish life and
what it means to be religious young girls; she found that she heavily enjoyed the experience and wondered if she should seek out other opportunities to “recreate” it. Obviously, this program is a perfect way to do so! She absolutely loves speaking to people, especially when it comes to Judaism, paired with deep, meaningful ideas. She also really enjoys learning and has had several chavrutas throughout this year. She believes that this program encapsulates these two things she’s most passionate about in the best way possible learning and creating close connections to people. Rivkie is truly excited to see how this will play out and what she can gain from these experiences, as well as how the larger Jewish community will hopefully be effected!
Neeli Fagan grew up in Skokie, IL and is currently attending Stern College. She is majoring in Biology and plans to pursue a career in nursing IY’H. For the past two years she has been an NCSY advisor for the Southern Region. She was also supposed to be a TJJ advisor this summer. NCSY has come to hold a very special place in her heart, and she has formed very close connections with some of the teens within her region. While the past two years have been great, since she doesn’t live in Florida, she have really only been able to attend two to three shabbatons a year. Shevet Glaubach, which expects their advisors to attend more than 2/3 shabbatons a year, as well as to have a certain number of chavrusas throughout the year, would be a great opportunity for her to strengthen her bond with the teens, and to become the best advisor that she can be.
Zahava Fertig from Woodier, NY is currently a senior at Stern College for Women, studying Political Science. Prior to Stern, she went to MMY for seminary, and Midreshet Shalhevet for high school. After spending some summers working at Moshava I.O., this summer she co-created and facilitated a two-week mental health advocacy program for Jewish teens with a grassroots nonprofit called Project Proactive. As a returning Shevet Glaubach Fellow (and Leadership Board member) and Southern NCSY advisor, she is eagerly anticipating the start of the new academic year filled with meaningful learning opportunities and programs, development training workshops, and actively participating in new collaborative projects. Whether it will be in person or over Zoom, she looks forward to meeting and working with this year’s cohort of Shevet Glaubach Fellows as they transform the present and future development of our beloved Jewish community.
Jacob Fisher is currently enrolled in Lander College majoring in psychology. He attended 2 years in Israel at Mevaseret. He loves to swim (certified lifeguard), play tennis, and play guitar and violin. He lives in Edison NJ, where he is attending college (virtually) and working as a Behavior Tech providing ABA therapy. He has extensive experience working with all types of children and teenagers, at all religious observance levels. At HASC, Shalva (in Israel for two years), Camp Simcha, or as a life guard in his community Jewish camp, outreach was always part of his focus. Whether it’s Shabbos, learning, or simply doing a daily activity, his passion about Judaism is always present, and he welcomes the opportunity to share his enthusiasm.
Jakey Friedman, from West Hempstead, NY, attended DRS for high school and then had the privilege of learning in Yeshivat Shaalvim for two years in Eretz Yisroel. He is in his first semester in Yeshiva University, and although he is undecided major, he is highly considering majoring in Psychology/smicha, or possibly pre-med/smicha. Throughout his summer experiences, he has been blessed with incredible role models, counselors, and mentors, and it has been a dream of his to be able to give over what he have received from them.
Shlomo Friedman lives in Cedarhurst, NY and is currently in Queens college studying psychology and learning at Yeshiva Shor Yoshuv. After HAFTR high school, he attended Yeshivat Lev HaTorah in Ramat Beit Shemesh Israel and that gave him a whole new perspective on almost everything. He is starting to see things differently and in a more real way which he has never experienced before that first time he attended yeshiva. Since then he has developed something- a passion- but not exactly- of trying to connect with people in a similar background as he came from, perhaps in the early stages of coming to look at their Jewish roots but also just in general, the yearning to know more about life. If he can become for someone else, that person/friend that he would’ve wanted and benefited greatly from in his own life, he can’t think of a bigger opportunity, honor and goal that he would want to accomplish.
Sruli Fruchter is a junior at Yeshiva University, and has been a Southern NCSY advisor for the past year. The Shevet Glaubach Fellowship is a fantastic opportunity to both strengthen friendships with NCSYers and deepen our discussions as we continue to learn about our relationship to ourselves, Am Yisrael, and Hashem — he can’t wait for what comes next!
Daniella Furman, from West Hempstead, NY, went to SKA for high school, and then MIDMO for seminary. She now attends Adelphi University studying to become an RN in a joint BSN program. She went on GIVE Israel going into 11th grade. Little did she know she would come back with a new passion and outlook on torah and religion. She was raised in a frum halachik home, however GIVE made her have an excitement and passion of her own! She got extremely close with one of her advisors and through watching her pure love of torah and Judaism, and countless conversations with her, Daniella was given a new outlook and took on a new approach to making Judaism her own. Joining the scholarship would give her the opportunity to give back to the organization that gave so much to her. She would love to have the opportunity to effect the lives of teens just like her advisor affected her!
Rachel Gilder is from White Plains, NY and is currently in college to get her Bachelor’s in Nursing. She has been doing NCSY for a very long time including being an NCSYer, as well as an advisor. She was a Shevet Glaubach Fellow last year and she is so excited to continue to build relationships with her community as well as with NCSYers in addition to learning with them. Her goal as a Shevet Glaubach Fellow is to develop a closer relationship with the teens.
Tali Goldman is from Highland Park, NJ. She goes to Stern and is studying Business Analytics and Computer Science. She loves learning and teaching Torah and is excited to spread more torah through the fellowship.
Avi Greenberg, from Woodmere, NY, just started YU and studying Business. Three and four summers ago he had the privilege of being in NCSY Kollel where he had the most amazing summers and Iearned so much about what it means to be a Jew. In his second summer in Kollel he roomed with 4 friends and 4 kids from Vegas who were part of the Mechina Program. Having this setup was incredible for him and for the others. They would have very meaningful conversations about Yidishkeit which helped him a lot and I’m sure it helped them as well. It helped him because he needed to know the reasons for why we do many things that we do in Judaism. Many of these things he realized that he didn’t know before they asked me, so he went to a rebbe or Madrich and asked the question to them so that he can give them the correct answer. Over the course of the 6 weeks we became very close with them and even some of them he has spoke to recently. this summer he had the privilege of being an advisor for New York NCSY and he felt that he was able to have an impact even in the few short weeks he spent with the NCSY’ers. He is very excited about opportunities of the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship because it can give him the opportunity to give over why he feels it’s Geshmak to be a Yid. It will also allow him to form relationships with teens whom he can speak to on a daily basis and have an impact on.
Asher Gritz, from Boca Raton, FL, became observant over a decade ago, and has been striving to grow as a Jew and Ben Torah. His High School NCSY experiences including Chapter, Regional, and National boards and summer programs Camp Sports, Kollel, and JOLT infused within him that drive as well as the resources to quench it. Along the way he has gained tremendously from all the experiences he has had; whether being the only religious Jew in his Jewish Day school, the transplanting of his family to the Boca Raton Synagogue Jewish Community, or his years in Israel. But the biggest blessing has been the impact he has had on others along his journey. His whole family is now frum and admiringly he can say that his sister, Michal, has surpassed him in countless ways. After graduating from DKJA, he spent three years studying and growing at Yishrei Lev in Eretz Israel. He am currently 2nd year in Yeshiva University where he is learning in Rabbi Sobolofsky’s shiur, the Undergraduate Halacha B’Iyun Chabura, and majoring in ‘Psychology in the Community’. He has been an advisor for NCSY Camp Sports for the past 3 Summers including as Learning Coordinator as well as a Southern NCSY Advisor since returning from Israel. He is excited to to be able to put his passion, skills, and knowledge into action and sharpen them through the opportunities afforded by the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship.
Michal Gritz is a home grown NCSY advisor from Southern Florida. She discovered NCSY in high school, and fell in love! It helped her discover her passion of spreading Yiddishkeit to the world. Now, she is currently a full time student and a full time teacher of Torah. She is finishing her degree from Lander’s in Psychology and Judaic Studies while also teaching 2nd and 3rd graders Limudei Kodesh at The Jewish Academy in Hollywood, Florida. She is excited about the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship because she knows it offers high leveled professional development opportunities. She is looking forward to learning and growing together, to create a stronger Jewish nation.
David Haymov, from Monsey, NY, is currently studying business management in Landers College for Men. After spending two years in Yeshivat Reishit he realized what it really means to be a Jew. He also spent a Summer in Camp HASC which helped him grow as a person and with NCSY Camp Sports Kollel which sharpened his learning skills. He is excited to work with Shevet Glaubach because it’s an amazing opportunity to create a positive relationship with teens and show them a path he wishes he had known about in high school. He is also interested in pursuing chinuch as a possible career and he sees this as the perfect chance to develop that interest and gain the skills required for it.
Michal Herman is currently a junior at Stern College and studied at Sha’alvim for Women for seminary. She lives in Teaneck, NJ, and she is the oldest of three. Some of her hobbies include dancing, playing guitar, playing volleyball, reading, etc. She is a very outgoing and energetic person and bring her excitement with her wherever she goes! Though she is a serious student, she also loves to relax with friends and have a good time. She is really looking forward to bringing her energy to all future NCSY events!
Gabe Isaacs will be in his first year in Yeshiva University this year. He went to MTA even though he lives in Teaneck and currently is planning on majoring in Computer Science. In the past he has attended camp Mesorah, went to NCSY Kollel, worked at Morasha, Kaylie, and Mesorah. He is excited about the opportunities from the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship because it gives him the opportunity to give back to the Jewish people, while doing something he cares about. Helping people grow in their Jewish ways is something he loves doing even though it is a different experience for each person. It is something he feels very strongly about and hope he will be able to do for years to come.
Dov Jacobson lives in Teaneck, NJ and teaches at RYNJ. He is also pursuing his Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and he hopes one day to use that background to help people navigate life. Glaubach is a really exciting opportunity to take NCSY to the next level in terms of connection with the NCSYers and he can’t wait to get started.
Jaclyn Kholodenko is from Toronto, Canada. She spent the last two years learning in seminary in Israel and Brooklyn, New York. She is a first year at University of Toronto majoring in Cognitive Science. It is a fundamental idea that every Jewish soul has their personal stake in Torah, regardless of background and therefore it is our responsibility to ensure that every Jew has the capacity to realize how precious they are as a member of Klal Yisrael. It is largely for this reason that I’m passionate about the work NCSY does. NCSY is where she, along with many others, are given a once in a lifetime opportunity to discover the meaning of Jewish identity and use it to create a palpable connection to our past, present, and future. She was an active participant in NCSY in high school, serving as vice president for our Student Board in her senior year of high school. In her time as an NCSYer, she found that the most meaningful and impactful experiences came in the form of leadership programming. She looks back on those leadership seminars and summer programs with so much fondness and gratitude because it was through them that she was able to carve out a personal identity in the bigger picture of Jewish nationhood. She is especially excited about Shevet Glaubach’s mission of building a cohesive unit of like-minded individuals committed to the preservation of tradition. She looks forward to the opportunity to discuss issues our respective communities face and collaborate on strategies to bring the Jewish world closer together.
Sabina Korman is an undergraduate student at Stern College for Women where she is pursuing a joint nursing program. She is happy she had the chance to be a part of the Glaubach fellowship and hope to continue making an impact on the Jewish community.
Yonatan Kurz is originally from Teaneck, NJ. After having attended TABC for high school, followed by two years in Israel learning at Yeshivat Sha’alvim, he is currently a student at Yeshiva University, where he is majoring in political science and psychology. He has previously been an advisor on NCSY Summer for the past two summers on different programs after having been a camper on NCSY Summer, and he has also been a youth leader in his community and an older mentor in his school. He is very eager and enthusiastic about all the potential that comes with the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship, as he knows that it is a tremendous opportunity for growing Jewish leaders to have a profound impact on various communities. The ability to share one’s excitement for Torah and Jewish life with others while building lifelong relationships is truly an incredibly enriching and meaningful experience, and having such hands-on experience in other communities with fellow leaders of the Jewish Future who share the same passion and devotion to communal growth and leadership is an incredible opportunity. The chance to give back and have a tremendous impact on the Jewish community while making a difference in the lives of others and emulating those who have had a lasting influence on his religious growth means everything to him, and he is very excited about the possibility of joining this fellowship.
Miriam Rivkah Lapson grew up in Skokie, IL. She is currently a senior at Touro College finishing her B.A in Biology and Judaic Studies. She was a fellow last year and really enjoyed the experience. So much so, that this year she has joined the board in order to make the experience even better for the upcoming year!
Eitan Lavian is currently a senior at Yeshiva University majoring in Finance. He was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA, went to YULA for high school and spent one year at Lev HaTorah. Last year, he worked as an advisor for NCSY’s southern region and had a life changing experience as he was able to build numerous relationships with the kids. Since then, he has been inspired to continue to give back and create new lasting relationships.
Anna Lis, from Skokie, IL, just started Touro’s Graduate School of Education. She is studying both typical education and special education with a focus on Grades 1-6. Last year, she was fortunate to be a Shevet Glaubach Fellow (SGF) and loved it. She also has been involved with NCSY and Yachad for years! She is excited about the many opportunities that the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship affords its participants. She loves being able to exercise leadership. She loves getting to build lasting relationships with mentors, peers, and NCSYers. Most of all, She hopes to continue to help and give back to the Jewish community as a Shevet Glaubach Fellow.
Michael Livi was blessed to attend North Shore Hebrew Academy his entire life, graduating as Speaker of the Class in 2017. He was privileged to then study at Yeshivat Netiv Aryeh in Jerusalem for one year upon graduating High School. He is currently enrolled in the Honors Program at Yeshiva University Sy Syms School of Business, where, Be’ezrat Hashem, he plans to graduate with a Major degree in Finance and a two Minors in both Real Estate and Accounting. His service to the wonderful Great Neck community officially began in high school for the Gym Minyan (a Minyan for High School teens of all backgrounds), where, alongside 2 peers, he helped run a Minyan that catered to 150+ teens every week. He was first exposed to NCSY by Jonathan Zar as a young high school student, falling in love with what NCSY offers. Upon his return from Yeshiva, he applied to be (and was accepted as) an NCSY advisor for the New York (Great Neck) region and he currently seeks to give back more to his community.
Travis Melamed grew up in Jacksonville, FL and was an active Southern NCSYer during his high school career, where he attended public school in Jacksonville. For the past two years he has studied at Yeshiva Aish HaTorah, after being pushed by NCSY to attend a gap-year yeshiva program in Israel. Currently he is starting his first year at Yeshiva University and plans to pursue a psychology degree. He is excited about the opportunities that the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship presents because it is a chance to give back to the community that gave him so much. He looks forward to inspiring the next generation to take full advantage of their lives and the opportunities presented to them. Through this he looks forward to building on his own Judaism and leadership skills.
Liora Nimchinsky is originally from Houston, Texas. She is in Stern College for Women pursuing a career in nursing, hoping to one day be a labor and delivery nurse. Liora’s family moved around as she grew up, oftentimes to a relatively small Jewish community, thus giving her the opportunity to develop personal relationships with community leaders as well as get involved with NCSY. Liora is excited about the chavruta opportunities that the SGF will offer her and her NCSYERs.
Shira Nimchinsky is originally from Texas but moved around a lot and haven’t settled down yet. She is currently in Stern College for Women and she is studying Psychology. She was an NCSYer back in Texas and knew that doing Kiruv was something extremely important to her even back in high school. She is an adviser for Southern NCSY. She is super excited for the opportunities the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship is providing because she will better herself as an adviser and she will have more chances to interact and learn with her NCSYers.
Kayla Pulitzer is a current student at Azrieli Graduate School for Jewish Education and she teaches at Bais Yaakov of The Lower East Side in Manhattan! She teaches first through third grade art, sixth through eighth grade computers and also teaches second grade Ivrit. She has been a NY NCSY advisor for the past two years and was a Shevet Glaubach fellow last year!
Maytal Rahimzada grew up in Great Neck, NY and is currently majoring in Speech Pathology at Stern College for Women. She has been involved in NCSY for the past 5 years and was lucky enough to be a part of the Great Neck NCSY chapter as well as a current board member for Ahavat Shalom Youth. One thing that has stood out to her was the dedication and enthusiasm that advisors had while learning with their NCSYers, that’s something that she genuinely can’t wait to experience; being on the other side and bringing that enthusiasm and dedication to the table.
Shoshana Rockoff, from West Hempstead, NY, went to SKA for high school and then spent the next year and a half learning in Israel at MMY. She is currently a junior at Stern College, majoring in neuroscience. She is excited about the opportunities through the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship because she is determined to develop strong, lasting relationships, to grow and be impacted by Jewish communities and to learn with and from the people around her.
Daniel Rosenthal had an amazing four years at DRS before spending a year studying at Aish Gesher, before staying for the summer at Aish HaTorah where he was able to learn Jewish outreach tools, have ‘one-on-ones,’ and even teach classes. Now he is starting the third year of his Computer Engineering degree at the City College of New York where he is on the board of the Chabad club. Last year, he had the amazing opportunity to be a part of the first year of the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship, and he is excited to hopefully continue to have the opportunity to impact his community this year.
Miriam Rozin was originally from Vinnitsya, Ukraine, but her family immigrated to the States in August of 2001 when she was only 7 years old. She currently goes to the University of South Carolina and will be (b’ezrat Hashem) double majoring in Mathematics and Psychology, and hoping to use both to either be a High School Math Teacher or a School Psychologist. This year alone, she will be tutoring one of the Shluchim’s children in math and will be teaching Jewish Studies to the 3s and 4s at the local Jewish Day School. She has previously been a camp counselor and assistant director at the local Gan Israel and was a co-teacher at the Conservative synagogue’s Sunday School program for 6th/7th graders. She is super excited to be a part of the Shevet Glaubach because she wants to give back to her community opportunities that she was unable to have growing up. She had a very unique upbringing where her family is from, but ba’al teshuva at the same time, and other than the day school and Gan Israel, there wasn’t much else for her. She wants to be able to learn with teens and have the conversations with them that she was unable to ask as a teen and she wants to be as open as possible with them. She believes that if teens have a great connection to someone a bit older than them and can truly give their questions and emotions about their yiddishkeit, then less would leave the community in general.
Sara Saiovici was born in Miami, FL, but grew up in Venezuela. She is currently a student in Florida International University, majoring in Dietetics and Nutrition. She was a part of NCSY for most of her high school years, and it’s something she doesn’t want to let go of now that she has graduated. The impact her advisors made on her as an NCSYer is inexplicable – she truly doesn’t know where she would be without them. She wants to give back to NCSY and do the same for teenagers now. After high school, her year in Israel, and this past year in college, she feels like she has been able to grow a lot and she is ready to help others as well. Sara is excited because not only does she think she will be able to inspire the kids, but they will inspire her and help her grow insane amounts! She is also really looking forward to building life-long relationships with them like she has with her former advisors, whom she continues to learn from daily.
Lori Schneider, from Boca Raton, FL, is currently going to Lander College for Women and studying Marketing. She has been an advisor for the past two years. Previously, she was an advisor for the New Jersey region and last year she was an advisor for Southern. Lori was part of the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship last year and really enjoyed her experience. She is grateful for the Glaubach Fellowship because she was put out of her comfort zone and really thrived and grew from the experiences. She hopes to continue to do so and grow even more as an advisor!
Sandy Shaoolian, from Great Neck, NY, is a biology major going into her junior year at Stern College. She is currently on both the youth board and young professionals board at her shul (Ahavat Shalom) and she helps in making decisions, planning events/ shiurs, etc. She is really looking forward to the Shevet Glaubach fellowship because she is excited to be given the opportunity to learn and grow with the teens, side by side, and really loves the message of community that this fellowship is trying to get across!
Ariel Shayesteh from Great Neck, NY has been with NCSY for 3 years now and this will be his second year in Glaubach.
Julia Sherman is currently a senior at Lander College for Women and studying Psychology, but is planning on staying an extra year to get a Judaic Studies major as well. She has been involved with NCSY since 9th grade, serving on both chapter and regional board. She also had the opportunity to go on NCSY GIVE in the summer of 2015. After an amazing seminary year in Machon Ma’ayan, she had the privilege to be an advisor for New Jersey NCSY for the past two years (for the Teaneck and Metro West chapters). She also had the amazing opportunity to attend a chessed mission to Houston, TX with Bruriah students where we rebuilt houses, volunteered at a food bank, and more. She is excited about the opportunities that come with the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship because she wants to be even more involved with NCSY and inspiring teenagers through Torah, Chessed, and fun events.
Shoval Shoshani was born and raised in Queens, NY and currently lives in Washington Heights. He is currently a student at Yeshiva University and also attended Yeshiva of Central Queens for Middle School, then attended North Shore Hebrew Academy High School, and Yeshivat Torat Shraga for his gap year in Israel. He considers himself a friendly, outgoing young adult who’s trying to grow in Derech Eretz and Avodat HaShem. He would like to consider himself a proud, passionate and observant Jew who’s attempting to share the light of Torah and Derch Eretz with others.
Sam Sicklick, from Woodmere, NY, went to Rambam followed by Shaalvim. He is currently starting YU and intends to major in Computer Science Distributed Systems. He was previously an NCSYer on Kollel and has been involved with several summer camps in terms of working with kids to try to help foster, strengthen, or enliven their relationship with ׳ה . He is excited about the opportunities of the fellowship because he has seen the effect that close relationships with this dynamic can have on an individuals religious experience. He and many of his friends of similar modern orthodox background have experienced it in one form through Kollel, but he also has some friends who were in public school in Jacksonville who ended up going to Yeshiva in Israel because of the affect NCSY had on him. He also has mentors who have done similar things and he is excited to follow in their footsteps. Additionally, he feels that the fellowship will give him a window into some of the other streams of Judaism and direction in terms of how to relate to them.
Devorah Stuart, from Toronto, Canada, is currently living in Boca Raton, FL. She attended Tomer Devorah seminary this past year and will be iy’h attending Touro College this fall semester to study nutrition. Her love towards NSCY truly sparked a few summers ago when she attended their summer program called GIVE. Throughout her experience on GIVE, she was fortunate to witness the utmost love NCSY has for their participants and how much they care about their growth and success within Judaism. When she heard about the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship, she immediately wanted to be a part of it. Having the ability to learn, grow, answer questions and create a relationship is something she would be very fortunate to do with someone who may never have had the opportunity to do so. There are infinite topics and ideas in Judaism that she has been fortunate enough to learn, which have changed her life for the better. Sharing and learning these ideas as well as many more would be such an amazing opportunity and she looks forward to Iy’h doing so.
Sarit Swift, from Boca Raton, FL was blessed to spend two incredible years in Israel after high school. One and a half of which were spent studying in seminary and the other half a year being a madricha at a seminary. Before that, as an NCSYer, she spent a lot of time in leadership programs run by Rabbi Gonsher. She was also on chapter board for two years and was an advisor for Emtza NCSY. Her involvement in NCSY deepened her love for Judaism, kiruv, and leadership. Her plan for this year is to, God willing, learn Torah, study Hebrew, and work. She looks forward to partaking in this fellowship as well, and investing herself in helping to inspire the Jewish future, just like she was, and continues to be.
Yisroel Tannenbaum, from Edison, NJ, just returned from two years studying in Israel and is about to start his college career at YU on route to a major in some business field (currently undecided). He has worked in a number of different camps including Moshava I.O. for 5 years. He has worked along side a wide range of different kids and staff. He is excited to hopefully be part of the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship to broaden his horizon in torah related subjects, and hopefully to connect and inspire kids which were in similar situations to him growing up.
Yosef Tropp is from Teaneck, NJ. The past 2 years he was in Israel and then enrolled in YU for their Post-Pesach Program online. With God’s help he plans on continuing to attend YU this fall looking to possibly get a BS in Data Science. His summer working experience include being a counselor for Yachad at Lavi 2 years ago, working at Hasc last year, and working at Ncsy Kollel’s Project community in Teaneck this year. This past summer he felt especially prepared him for what he would do for Shevet Glaubach as he was giving Chaburas and connecting with high schoolers at the community NCSY program. He’s very excited about the opportunity Shevet Glaubach gives him to be able to spread Torah to Am Yisrael. Once being a high schooler himself, he has somewhat of an idea what it means to be struggling with connecting to Torah and know having a role model and somebody to talk to in high school would mean the world. Coming off a year and half in Eretz Yisrael and being able to really nurture a connection to Torah he’s very excited for the opportunity to give back to the Jewish teens of the Southern region.
Hadar Vaanunu, originally from Ft. Lauderdale, FL, grew up with a strong Israeli identity. Her Jewish identity cultivated later on when she became involved in Southern NCSY as a teen. She filled leadership roles in her local NCSY chapter and Regional board, as well as on her high school campus. Her strive for truth accompanied her throughout her Seminary years in Israel. Initially attending Sharfman’s, she went on to attending Darchei Binah for her second year and eventually became a Madricha dedicating her time to students, and subsequently joining the Seminary’s Poland trip as Madricha. Hadar now studies Psychology at Touro Landers College for Women in Manhattan and works as a teacher’s assistant.
Naomi Weintraub, from Miami, FL, currently goes to school at the University of Florida studying International Studies with a focus on the Middle East. Over her time in seminary, she volunteered with Friendship Circle where she had the opportunity to work with an Israeli family and their children for five months. In addition to forming meaningful relationships with the children, she feels like that hands-on experience gave her the confidence to trust herself when being responsible for someone else. She is very excited about what the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship has to offer because she believes it will give her the tools she needs to be the most well rounded, knowledgeable, and impactful mentor that she can be.
Rebecca Weiss was born and raised in Woodmere, NY. She is currently in Stern studying Speech Pathology. She was a counselor at Camp Morasha for three summers and this past summer she was a counselor at Camp Mesorah, although her original plan was to be an advisor on NCSY Give. She loved having meaningful conversations with her campers and helping them to further understand different areas of Judaism that they had questions about. She loves being able to connect to different types of people she meets and she wants to help others find the same love for Judaism that she have discovered in her own life. She is hoping to be able to do this through the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship!
Josh Wiener is a 20 year old YU student living in Woodmere, NY. He is fortunate to have 5 sisters and be the only male sibling in his family. He feels very strongly about the continuity of the Jewish people. He realizes that observing a Torah way of life is the only guarantee that we, as diaspora Jews have, in order to continue the link to our past heritage. He has joined with his grandparents to visit many Jewish communities as part of his grandfather, Steve Savitsky’s, speaking engagements. As a former OU president, he has been very active with NCSY. Josh has witnessed first hand the tremendous impact that NCSY has made on Jewish teens. This has motivated him to do all that he can to stop assimilation and intermarriage in our community. He has been involved in Partners in Torah, an organization that fosters one on one learning between a mentor and a mentee. On the local level, he has been involved in Yachad as an advisor and have attended many shabbatonim. It would be an honor to be a Shevet Glaubach fellow and spend the next year fulfilling his dreams and aspirations to help the Jewish community.
Talia Yahav, is currently enrolled at Lander College for Women studying Computer Science. She worked this past year in southern NCSY and was deeply connected with the kids and the region and loved it. She can’t wait to continue these relationships and connections!
Aliza Zavdi, from Los Angeles, CA, has attended Tiferet seminary this previous year and she will be attending Stern this year. She is interested in the Shevet Glaubach Fellowship because she strongly believes that connecting and having a relationship with someone goes beyond your religious observance. And by learning with someone who may see things from another perspective could lead to really growth oriented and thought provoking discussions. Another thing that makes her especially interested in the fellowship is that she was raised in a chabad household but it wasn’t until she was older when her parents put her in a non chabad high school that she gained an appreciation for the outreach that chabad does and she started a chabad club at her school. She would go with groups of girls to hand out candles for shabbos to Jewish women who otherwise wouldn’t have lit shabbos candles. She thinks it’s so beautiful to see that we are all a part of am yisrael and even if someone isn’t necessarily observant we can still connect and help each other grow.
Assigned to Boca Grove community, From Passaic, NJ
Hey, how’s it going. My name is Chananya Shiff and I am honored to be involved with a program such as this. I currently live in Passaic, NJ and I am studying psychology in Lander College for Men. Thank god I have parents who for a large majority of their lives dedicated their lives towards kiruv and bringing the jewish people closer to God. I hope that with this opportunity I can continue in that path. Thank you